Federal Lawsuit Charges Battery Manufacturer Navitas Systems LLC Fired Injured Employee Instead of Providing an Accommodation
ANN ARBOR, MI (STL.News) Navitas Systems, LLC., a company specializing in comprehensive energy storage solutions and battery manufacturing, violated federal law by using an unlawful company policy to deny a reasonable accommodation to an employee with a disability and then terminated the employee, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.
According to the suit, Navitas Systems maintained a policy that required an employee returning from any type of medical leave to have a “100% release for work.” The former employee, who was employed as a divisional controller, suffered a severe rotator cuff injury and fractured wrist in April 2020. His doctor restricted him from using his left arm but cleared him to return to work with restrictions. He requested permission to return to work despite Navitas’s policy, as he could perform all the essential functions of his position using his right arm. Navitas Systems applied its policy, refused to allow him to work, and fired him.
Such alleged conduct violated the American Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), which prohibits discrimination based on disability. The EEOC filed suit (Case No. 2:24-cv-12478-BRM-APP) in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The EEOC seeks back pay, compensatory damages, punitive damages on behalf of the former employee, and injunctive relief to prevent future discrimination.
“Policies that require an employee to be restriction-free before returning to work run afoul of the ADA,” said Miles Uhlar, trial attorney for the EEOC’s Detroit Field Office. “This employee could have performed the essential functions of his position. By strictly applying its ‘100% release’ policy, Navitas violated the ADA.”
For more information on disability discrimination, please visit www.eeoc.gov/disability-discrimination-and-employment-decisions. For more information on reasonable accommodations, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc-disability-related-resources/reasonable-accommodation.
The EEOC’s Detroit Field Office is part of the Indianapolis District Office, which oversees Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, and parts of Ohio.
USPress.News covered this story as well.
